The Rogues of StarClan
by Troublestripe
Summary: When StarClan abandons the four great clans they are reduced to three bands of rogues that fight along no codes. Yet when they try to fix what was broken, ThunderClan returns to claim what was once theirs, with claws unsheathed and murder on their minds.


_**Alternate universe**_

The Rogues of StarClan

Prologue

"Listen, my Clan!" The silent night erupted into a frenzy of feral caterwauls as a she-cat addressed a group of small, mangy felines. Their pelts carried burdens of scars and burns as their eyes flashed with many emotions, lighting the shadows with anger, excitement, and most of anticipation. Some of these cats showed their eager by kneaded the ground with claws unsheathed as others paced around waiting for their leader's permission to charge into battle.

The dark ginger she-cat flicked her tail and scanned her eyes along the clearing, approved by the reaction she received by taking the role to led. Her eyes could not help but linger to the tree where Blackstar used to make his own announcement. That tree was now nothing but a pile of burned bark and ashes waiting for the wind to blow away.

Holding her head high and exposing her chest she yowled, "ThunderClan believes that the drought-fire did not touch their lands because _StarClan _protected them!" She spat at the word 'StarClan' and unsheathed her claws. "They are fools to resist facts, StarClan does not walk these skies any more nor shall they. That clan of spirits has moved on, and so shall ThunderClan."

"Clan," she turned to address each cat circled around her. "Kill every cat that fights back, let them escape if they run. StarClan shall have its last members join them before they continue any further!"

The Clan fell silent for they realized what was about to happen and curled their lips back. They all knew ThunderClan could no longer live in this forest with the belief of StarClan so strong in their hearts. They ignored the blunt warning that StarClan had left them and held onto lies with the tips of their claws.

With a flash of Russet's eyes, she meowed calmly, "Let us go."

Like foxes, they melted into the shadows out of sight and began to dash through the forest. Soot clouded behind their paws and covered their burned fur as they ran, but soon grass began to fall under their pads marking the beginning of ThunderClan territory. Russet curled her lips back into a snarl as she remembered that this _clan_ still had names in honor of StarClan.

"No wonder Tawny fled the Clan," Russet thought gleefully as she looked back at the tortoiseshell. Her kits ran beside her, eyes bright with excitement, almost blood lusting like their mother. The hard times the drought had given all of the Clans a new outlook on life and this Clan has been hit the hardest. Even the once-ThunderClan cat Tawny was ready to sink her claws into flesh.

The racing cats began to slow to a trot as their eyes fell upon a large hollow, what they were searching for. The rugged cats lurked slowly forward with their eyes opened as wide as the full moon above, and their claws unsheathed. Even the smallest kit licked its muzzle with anticipation, already imaging the taste of blood in its jaws.

Russet paused for a minute and prowled out from the protection of the shadows for something had caught her eye.

A cat lay at the entrance of the hollow, his head high and ears alert. The instant Russet set a paw out of the shadows it flashed its eyes in her direction and froze. His back arched and tail bushed out as it released a caterwaul. Instantly, the yowls and startled mewls of the small group within, once known as ThunderClan, sounded. Russet's claws kneaded at the ground with anticipation to sink her claws into that tom's throat but she did not rush into battle. Instead, she signaled her group to fall back.

"What are you thinking, Russet?" a gray tabby she-cat named Kink snarled, her fur stuck up more than ever now that they were on the brink of battle. "We retreat now and they will consider us weak!" Russet turned her head slightly to show she acknowledged the tabby's disagreement but flicked her tail in dismissal; she knew what she was doing.

Kink quickly fell back with the Clan.

"Stay well out of sight," Russet snapped as she observed the tom at the entrance. She saw a glimpse of his tail disappear into the barrier. "Kink, once I flicker my ears, bring the Clan to attack."

With a quick nod, Kink too disappeared into the shadows.

"Russetstar!" a cat caterwauled. The rugged she-cat flinched at hearing that name; it seemed to hold so many burdens. The cats lurking in the shadows seemed to roll to life for several cats hissed and began to growl. With a swish of a tail, they all fell quiet. "Where are you?"

"The old _leader _is going blind," Russet snarled back, playing with the fragile mind of the elder. "Firestar, just give up in StarClan and I shall leave you alone."

Russet's eyes narrowed as the ginger tom's eyes flicked past, he saw the elderly cat flinch when his weight shifted to his right. The she-cat's lips curled back into a gleeful snarl, "Hanging onto your last life?"

Firestar flinched and he rose steadily to his paws, "I do not want to fight, our beliefs have nothing to do with the other Clans, why does it matter?"

Russet's lips curled over her fangs at that as she sulked forward into the ginger tom's view. The old kittypet's eyes widened but he remained where he stood. "You're alone?" he mused.

"You do not want to fight even though we killed nearly everyone in your 'Clan' last moon? Even Jay, turned against you and fled the forest to follow StarClan. Your own grandson. He trusted our words and lived unlike Holly and Lion." Russet let her lips curling into a gleeful snarl as she added, "We took care of those two quickly."

Firestar's lip curled, "Their names are Lionblaze and Hollyleaf."

Russet purred with satisfaction as she realized he avoided correcting Jay's name. Jay made it quite clear at the last gathering that StarClan has moved on and he was abandoning his medicine cat name and following them. Jay has not been called by his medicine cat name since.

With that, Russet flicked her ears toward Firestar and lunged. A dozen cats flew from the forest behind their leader. With sharp eyes, Russet landed to the right of Firestar, the old elder turned to face the she-cat but hesitated. In that mere second, Russet sunk her fangs deep into his throat and ripped the last life out of Firestar.

Warriors rushed around Russet, their tails disappearing into the hallow one at a time as the shriek of cats within yowled in fear and protest. It was nothing but music to her ears as she dropped the dead leader down to her paws.

As the moon began to rise, ThunderClan cat's poured out from the depths of the hallow, yowling in terror now as they were chased from their home. Within, Russet could hear one ThunderClan cat still fighting within. As moments passed and the shadows of the night grew, the yowls did not subside. Impatiently, Russet padded through the torn bracken entrance to come face-to-face with Brambleclaw.

Russet flicked her tail to signal the warriors behind Brambleclaw not to attack as she stepped aside to reveal Firestar's broken body.

Brambleclaw's eyes shinned against the full moon with anger and defeat as they fell upon Firestar's unmoving body and snarled at Russet. "You think this is the last time you will see ThunderClan?"

"With Lion out of the way, yes," she purred with pride.

"Lion_blaze_ was more of a warrior than you will ever be," Brambleclaw snarled.

Russet arched her back and hissed, slashing her claws at Brambleclaw's throat. Instinctively, Brambleclaw lowered his head, protecting his neck while stepping backwards. An anger caterwaul fell from his jaws as her claws ranked across his closed eyes. Shaking the blood from his eyes, he opened them, relieved to see. Russet spat with disgust as Brambleclaw pushed past her and fled into the forest.

"The moon is still shinning on us Bramble!" Russet growled while facing the shinning full moon above her head. "Where is your StarClan now?"

**Well? What do you think?**


End file.
